You are currently viewing our boards as a guest, which gives you limited access to view most discussions and access our other features. By joining our free community, you will have access to post topics, communicate privately with other members (PM), respond to polls, upload content, and access many other special features. In addition, registered members also see less advertisements. Registration is fast, simple, and absolutely free, so please, join our community today!

I am a woodworker who is thinking of switching to waterstone mainly for my plane blades and chisels. All of my tools are of O1 steel, high carbon, old tools. Well, most anyway. I have a few A2 pieces. I am thinking about these stones: the naniwa 8k snow white, the suehiro rika 5k and a king red brick 1k. What would you say to these stones for working the edges of chisels and plane blades? I take good care of my tools like my dad said to so I tend to sharpen frequently amd only have to touch things up a bit for the next days workI am a boat building student and have a good bit of work coming my way, will these stones work for me?

Thanks for posting my q. I will be watching for answers. Money is a REAL BIG ISSUE for me right now. I found the king red brick on ebay for 19 dollars. So my thinking is this; I will spend the most money on a medium and good finishing stone because really, I have diamond plate that I sharpen on, DMT's, I have a motley bunch of stones but they work. I go from an old norton combo coarse/fine stone to a 600 perforated DMT to a 1200 ezlap to a home made strop with a medium compound to another homemade strop with the green compound. Sometimes I break out the glass plates and sandpaper. All of this is of course if I am rehabbing an old chisel or plane blade that I just got. Most of the time its just the ezlap and the two strops. I have enough tools to have different sets with different bevels on them so I dont have to go regrind bevels for different jobs. So I mostly just touch up edges. I may just end up keeping my motley collection and keep on keepin on the way I have. I have always wanted to just try waterstones plus it is what the school specifies but they said that if what I have works it should be ok. Unfortunately though Money is my biggest determining factor. Otherwise I would definitely just grab some choseras or shaptons and be done with it. Bill.

I must be getting to you, Mark I like your stone recommendations. Though I would push for the 6k Arashiyama over the Rika.

wm_crash

Post subject: Re: Stones to get for my woodworking tools.

Posted: Mon Aug 20, 2012 1:57 am

Joined: Thu May 10, 2012 2:12 pmPosts: 43

Hi Bill,

Fellow woodworker here. Seeing what you have for now, here's my advice: put all your money into a DMT flattener (or Atoma for that matter, I just happen to own a DMT) and then consider more stones.

I am not sure how you sharpen, but few people can freehand reset the bevel on a thin vintage Stanley blade, so I am going to assume you're not one of them. If you're like me, you are going to use a jig. Whatever jig you use, that wheel is going to dig into the stones and make it uneven way more than simple sharpening does. You just want the stones flat flat flat.

The 600 DMT you have is too fine for flattening. Fine diamond stones are affected by the abrasives in the waterstones. You are basically abrading the adhesive that keeps the diamond particles on the metal plate. Think of the coarser diamond stones with bigger particles as being "long reach" so that the waterstone surface proper doesn't come in contact with the adhesive that is at the base of the diamond particle. This story came out around the same time DMT came up with the 8K stone and they were specifically discouraging people from rubbing it against a waterstone to condition it. The story goes that 300 diamond grit is as fine as you want to take to a waterstone.

The other advice I'd give you is to ditch the pencil hash mark approach as a gauge to how flat the stones are. A straight ruler (like the one from a combination square) gives me perfect indication. Just wipe the water on top of the stone, and lay it on top.

Just registered and want to thank ya'll for the help. I went with the stones I originally decided on and detailes in the OP. Going to have to meke custom bases for the naniwa and the bester. They are all of them white stones so I will have to ne able to differentiate between them as time wears on. I havent gotten a chance to use them yet but will soon I hope.

richinva

Post subject: Re: Stones to get for my woodworking tools.

Posted: Thu Aug 23, 2012 1:07 pm

Joined: Sun Apr 22, 2012 11:20 pmPosts: 125Location: VA, USA

bilbro wrote:.....They are all of them white stones so I will have to ne able to differentiate between them as time wears on......

Magic marker on the side and/or ends of the stone is very helpful...................

_________________"The best way to get better is to leave your ego in the parking lot."----Eddie Wood, 1994

We discovered that he had been educated beyond his intelligence........

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 3 guests

You cannot post new topics in this forumYou cannot reply to topics in this forumYou cannot edit your posts in this forumYou cannot delete your posts in this forumYou cannot post attachments in this forum